Helena weekly herald., 1887-01-06

saddle bags lump of grayish iron ore, studded
here and there with star points of pyrites.
The stranger said nothing, but his eye looked
a diaboical suggestion.
"You are lucky, friend Greaser."
"Eh?'
at is silver"
/, "How you know this?"
at is my business. I'm metallurgist"
"And you can say what shall be silver and
what is not?"
"Yes-see here!" The stranger took from
his saddle bags little leather case con-
tanning some half dozen phials. One, en-
wrapped in dark blue paper, he held up to
Concho
"This contains preparation of silver"
Conchs's eyes sparkled, but he looked
doubtingly at the stranger.
"Get me some water in your pan"
Concho emDtied his water bottle in his pros
pecting pan and handed it to the stranger.
He dipped dried blade of grass in the bot
tie and then let drop fall from its tip in the
water. The water remained unchanged
"Now throw a little salt in the water" said
the stranger.
Concho did so. Instantly white film ap-
peared on the surface, and presently the whole
mass assumed a milky hue
Concho crossed himself hastily, Mother Of
God, it is magicl"
"Itis chloride of silver, you darned fool"
Not content with this cheap experiment.,
the stranger then took Conchos breath away
by reddening some ltmus paper with the
nitrate, and then completely knocked over
the simple Mexican by restoring its color by
dipping 1t in the salt water.
you shall try me this" said Concho, offer
ing his iron ore to the stranger; "you shall
ure the silver and the salt"
"Not SO fast my friend" answered the
stranger; "in the first place this ore must be
melted, and then a chip taken and put in
shape like this-and that is worth something,
my Greaser cherub. No. sir, man don't
spend all his youth at Freiburg and Heidel-
burg to throw away his science gratuitously
on the first Greaser he meets"
@It will cost-eh-how much?" said the
Mexican eagerly.
"Well, l should say it would take about 500
and expenses to-to-fnd silver in that ore
But once you've got it there-you're all right
for tons of it,"
"You shall have it" said the now excited
Mexican "You shall have it of us-the
four! You shall come to our camp and shall
melt it-and show the silver and-enough!
Come." and in his feverishness he clutched
the hand of his companion as if to lead him
forth at once.
what are you going to do with your
mule!" said the stranger.
True, holy mother-what, indeed?"
Look yer" said the stranger, with grim
smile, "she won't stray far, I'll be bound.
I've an extra pack mule above here; you can
ride on her, and lead me into camp, and to-
morrow come back for your beast
Poor honest Concho's heart sickened at the
prospect Of leaving behind the tired servant
he had objurgated SO strongly a moment be-
fore, but the love of gold was uppermost. IL
will come back to thee, little one, tomorrow,
a rich man. Meanwhile, wait thou here,
patient one-Adios.-thou smallest of mules
-Adiosw
AIu; selZlhS Tue Stranger ; Hallu, lie claIn-
bered up the rocky ledge until they reached
the summit. Then the stranger turned and
gave one sweep of his malevolent eye over
the valley.
Wherefore, in after years, when their
story was related, with the devotion Of true
Catholic pioneers, they named the mountain
ia Canada de la Visitacion del Diablo,"
"The Gulch of the Visitation of the Devil"
the same being now the boundary lines of
one of the famous Mexican land grants